


Play the Hand You're Dealt

by misura



Category: Death Race (2008)
Genre: Banter, Card Games, Community: smallfandomfest, Gen, Post-Movie(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-14
Updated: 2015-07-14
Packaged: 2018-04-09 08:38:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4341674
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/misura/pseuds/misura
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Case flicked a card at Jensen. "Oh, sure. Is that why you've got a new boyfriend hanging off your arm every time I blink? 'cause you're looking for Mr Right?"</i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Play the Hand You're Dealt

"This bitch be cheating, yo."

Jensen tsked. He was holding a pair of tens himself, and had therefore managed to convince himself he might still hope. A foolish notion, no doubt, which would result in his losing quite a bit more money than Joe this round. "Language, please. There's ladies present."

"Only thing I see is ladies," said Joe. "Who you want to call a man on this table, huh?"

"Well, you're one, aren't you?" Jensen considered if he wanted to risk getting another card. It might put him on top; it might seriously mess up his hand. Choices, choices. "Last time I checked, anyway."

Case's eyebrows raised. Jensen congratulated himself on a distraction well-executed. "Something you guys want to tell me about here?"

Joe snorted. "Like I'd ever be interested in some skinny _white_ ass."

"You never seen it, how'd you know it's skinny?" Case asked. Not leaping to the defense of Jensen's very fine and all-around perfect ass, Jensen noted.

Probably not something he should consider a sign from up on high, but then, sometimes you had to take a leap of faith. "All right, hit me. I'm feeling lucky."

"I got eyes now, don't I? Only just because I can look, that don't mean I want to put my hands on it."

"Joe's the discerning type," Jensen said. "Also known as 'picky'." Also known as 'dead easy'. Jensen still hadn't quite figured out how that combination worked, exactly. "Now how about that card, huh?"

"Damn right I'm picky."

Case flicked a card at Jensen. "Oh, sure. Is that why you've got a new boyfriend hanging off your arm every time I blink? 'cause you're looking for Mr Right?"

"Might be I am," Joe said. "Might be those fools don't got what it takes to properly appreciate this package. I mean, a brother's got needs."

Jensen looked at his new card and sighed. Two of spades. Fat lot of good _that_ was going to do him. "Let's not get into details about your needs here, shall we? Of which I'm sure there are many."

"Naw, just a couple of things," Joe said. "Real simple ones, too."

Case snorted. Jensen managed not to, thanks to some finely honed survival instincts he'd picked up who knew where. "Yeah? How come none of them stick around, then?" Joe tended not to volunteer any information; Jensen imagined the dumping might happen in the them doing it to him sense of the word, although knowing Joe, he kind of doubted that.

Not that Jensen swung that way, but he figured that if he did, and if he happened to be black, well, he'd definitely hit that, and more than once, too.

Joe shrugged. "You here to talk or to play cards?" Mr Social and Talkative, as usual.

"Well, I was hoping to staunch the flood a little," Jensen said. "You know, postpone losing the last of my dollars with another five minutes or so."

"If that's your attitude, you can simply fork it over right now." Case smiled. "Of course, it's less fun for me, but hey, I'll get over it."

"Real soon, too, I bet. Drink, anyone?" Joe rose.

"Yeah, I'm thinking a clear head's not really going to help me any here, so why not? Beer, please. Cold."

"Funny man." Joe grinned. "Anything for the lady?"

Case sighed. "You guys just make this way too easy, you know? Sure, I'll have a beer, too."

"Well, excuse me for having opted to pick up a skill set that actually allows me to make an honest living. You want a challenge, how 'bout not cheating our asses off next time? I mean, you heard the man - I barely got an ass as it is."

"Now who's using language unfit for polite company, huh?"

"I never said 'polite'. I said there were ladies present." Joe handed him a bottle. "Thanks."

"Just get it over with, man. I'm getting bored here."

"Well, there might be a few cars left in the shop. I mean, if you insist."

Joe shook his head slowly. "Thinks he's hilarious. Sad."

"Ouch, that hurts." Jensen looked at his hand. "Give me another card."

"Pitiful. Seriously, I can smell it from here." Joe sniffed. "Desperation."

"Unlike some people I could mention, at least I'm still playing."

Case rolled her eyes. Joe scoffed. "How 'bout you hate me 'cause I'm prettier _and_ smarter than you are? A better driver, too, now that I think on it - _and_ a better mechanic."

"Modesty's such an attractive quality in a man, don't you think? Outright sexy."

"Yeah. It's sure getting hot in here." Case fanned herself, grinning. Trying to get an edge on Joe for the next game, Jensen didn't doubt. 

It'd probably work, too: women might be the fair sex, sure, but that didn't exactly mean they were harmless. Or fair, for that matter. In fact, for someone like Case, Jensen'd sooner use words like dangerous, slippery and, of course, the best damn friend a man in a bind could hope for.

Not that Joe was anything to scoff at, of course. Jensen reckoned he'd gotten quite a bit of luck there.

If it hadn't been for these shitty hands he kept drawing, he might almost start believing there was a God with some grand plan up there.

"Girl, you could be sitting there naked and it still wouldn't do shit for me," Joe said.

Case turned to Jensen and smiled. _Not_ trying to get an edge on Joe then, maybe.

"Hardly like you need to flash me some skin to mess up my game, is it?"

"At least you know what your problem is," Case said, her smile turning into a grin as Jensen tossed his cards onto the table. "That's the first step in fixing it - or so I've heard."

"Stay out of prison, he tells me. Put in an honest day's work. Don't go looking for no trouble."

Case tipped her head back as she lifted her bottle of beer to her lips. Jensen wondered how any man could see that sight and not feel something stir. Didn't mean he had to make an idiot out of himself or anything, true. "I don't go looking for trouble."

"You could make a pretty decent mechanic, you know," Jensen said. Several of their customers'd probably develop a lot more trouble with their cars, but, well, money was money, wasn't it? Not his problem if they got more of it from a couple of young idiots whose brains were located a bit lower than usual. "If you're interested ... "

"Feels like settling down," Case said. "I don't know if you've noticed, but I'm not really the kind of girl to settle down. Been there, tried that, didn't work out so well."

"Just because the first guy you tried it with turned out to be an asshole - "

"Please," Joe said. "Language."

"Sorry." Jensen sighed. "It's about her bed time, anyway."

Piper looked at the three of them, eye wide and bright. Still far more of her mother in her than of her daddy, which was probably a lucky thing.

"So what sort of hand did you have this round, hm?" Jensen turned her cards over and chuckled.

Joe whistled. "That is _some_ luck. So hey, whaddaya say we make the next game a little more interesting, huh? None of this betting for money no more - me 'n' Jensen can't afford that, anyway."

"What, like strip-poker or something?" Case smirked. "What happened to you not being interested?"

Joe shrugged. "Figured I'd do something nice for my bro here."

"Yeah, sure," Jensen said. "Remind me to thank you when I'm sitting here in my underwear, will you?"


End file.
